


The Past Lingers Like Snowflakes

by BridgetMcKennitt



Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Misunderstandings, NPT Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-06 03:38:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15185909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BridgetMcKennitt/pseuds/BridgetMcKennitt
Summary: He didn't want Hikaru to quit playing Go.





	The Past Lingers Like Snowflakes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [izayoi_no_mikoto](https://archiveofourown.org/users/izayoi_no_mikoto/gifts).



Akira just finished his green tea when his phone rang. He checked who was calling and smiled when he saw Hikaru's name on the screen. He answered it with a warm greeting.

"Uh, hey, Akira. How are you?" Hikaru's words were slightly slurred and Akira sat up in his chair at the sound of that.

"Hikaru, never mind me. Are you okay?"

"Oh, well. You see, I was ice skating with Isumi and Waya when I fell really hard and..." Hikaru trailed off and Akira gritted his teeth. He was _not_ going to yell. He was above that sort of behavior.

He might yell at Hikaru.

"What happened?"

"I may have fractured my arm and wrist. Don't worry, I'm fine! They took me to the hospital and my arm is in a cast now. The doctor also gave me some pain medications so it doesn't hurt at the moment."

"Hikaru! That's not okay at all. What hospital are you in so I can see you?" Akira was already getting up and throwing some yen onto the counter to pay for his bill. "You don't even know how to ice skate. Why would you do something so foolish?"

"Waya wanted to go and I said yes. It was fun at first until I tried to do something I couldn't and fell. Isumi tried to catch me. The doctor said it was a clean break."

"Break? You said it was a fracture!"

Akira stepped out of the shop onto the sidewalk where light snow began to fall. There was an indoor ice skating rink not too far from where he was, though Akira didn't know where Waya took Hikaru for this mishap to occur. "Hikaru, what hospital are you at?" Akira asked, prompting him once more.

Hikaru told him and Akira began hailing for a taxi. "Stay right there. I'm going to pick you up. If Waya lets you leave, I am going to be very upset at him."

"I'll tell him. I'll be good, Akira." Hikaru ended the call before Akira could say another word and he bit his lip to stop from growling. The taxi driver wouldn't understand how incredibly frustrating Hikaru was.

He arrived at the hospital and found Hikaru sitting in the lobby with Waya and Isumi keeping watch over him. He ignored Hikaru's friends as he took in Hikaru's appearance. There were smudges on Hikaru's face and his clothes were askewed. Then he focused on the cast on Hikaru's right hand that covered most of his fingers up to just before his elbow.

Hikaru looked up and waved at Akira with his other hand. "Hey, Akira. Thanks for picking me up."

"Of course," Akira said with some stiffness in his tone as he helped Hikaru to his feet. "Someone has to take care of you."

"Oi, Touya!" Waya said as he glared. Akira continued to ignore him.

"I have a taxi waiting outside for us." Akira moved to Hikaru's unaffected arm and began leading him outside. When they got into the taxi and Akira gave the driver directions to Hikaru's place, Akira let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't that he didn't trust Hikaru's friends, but he worried more when Hikaru wasn't in his sight.

Hikaru leaned his head against Akira's shoulder. "Thanks for picking me up. I'm sorry about this."

"It's not a problem. How long will you be in that cast?"

"Uh, I think the doctor said two months? He also said I'm out of commission from working during that time as well." Hikaru chuckled softly. "I don't know what I'm going to do to keep myself busy then."

There was a roaring sound in Akira's ears as he immediately went cold. "You won't be able to play Go? Why not?"

Hikaru lifted his cast and winced at the action. Akira reached out to help Hikaru put his arm back down. "Ah, I see. Okay, no Go then."

They traveled the rest of the way to Hikaru's place in silence. But for Akira, his mind was racing. What was Hikaru going to do without Go for the next couple of months? Fortunately, Hikaru had enough money saved up that he didn't have to worry about paying rent or food. But a big part of Hikaru's life was Go and Akira couldn't imagine going longer than a day not playing the game. Hikaru had been a pro for five years, so it wasn't like he was going to suddenly change his mind and quit Go, but it was always an underlying fear of Akira's.

He didn't want Hikaru to quit playing Go.

"Have you eaten yet? I can order us something to eat."

Hikaru beamed at him and Akira couldn't help but smile back. "That'd be great, Akira. Now that you've mentioned it, I am a little hungry."

When they arrived at Hikaru's place, Akira paid the taxi driver and helped Hikaru upstairs. Akira had offered Hikaru a room within the Touya house when Hikaru was looking for his own place since his parents were rarely at home anymore. Hikaru had declined the offer, saying he didn't want to intrude. Not that it mattered since the two of them spent most of their time either at Akira's place, the Touya parlor, or at Hikaru's place. More often than not, they were always together.

"I'm ordering from that Chinese place a few blocks from here." Akira looked at the take-out menu. "I'm getting some hujiao bing and mapo tofu. Should I order anything else?"

"That sounds good, thank you." Hikaru made himself comfortable at his kotatsu with his arm resting on a pillow.

Akira quickly ordered their food and hung up before going to sit at the kotatsu. He studied Hikaru, trying to see if the thought of not being able to play Go was wearing him down. Akira felt like it was wearing on him and it wasn't like he was wearing the arm cast.

He took a deep breath. "What would you like to do while we wait for the food? You have-" Akira broke off realizing the error of his words. Besides Go, and Go related items, Hikaru didn't really have a lot of anything else at his place. Neither did Akira, for that matter. Go was their lives. It was the reason the two of them met and the reason why they were so entwined in each other's lives. What was Hikaru going to do if he didn't have Go?

What was Akira going to do?

Fortunately, Hikaru spoke up when Akira stopped speaking. "The remote for my TV is somewhere here. Find it so we can look for something to watch."

Akira nodded in a jerky motion as he got up to look for the remote and found it under a stack of books about Go. He sat back next to Hikaru and began looking for something for them to watch. They settled on a movie that neither of them had seen before.

When their food arrived, Akira paid for the meal and brought it to the kotatsu. Except he realized something else, how was Hikaru going to eat when his dominant hand was out of commission?

"Guess you have to feed me!" Hikaru said with too much glee laced in his words.

Akira scoffed as he handed Hikaru a hujiao bing in a napkin. "You can eat this just fine with your other hand. Start with that first."

They ate in silence while the movie played in front of them. It felt good to just sit there with Hikaru, even with the predicament Hikaru managed to get himself into. The next several weeks were going to be agony for him if Hikaru wasn't allowed to play Go. They had nothing else in common besides Go and Akira feared that this was the end of their friendship.

"Your face looks constipated, Akira, like you're thinking too hard." Hikaru nudged Akira with his shoulder. "Food isn't that serious."

"I wasn't thinking about food." Not that he could tell Akira what he was thinking exactly. Hikaru would only make fun of him. "Are you in pain right now?"

Hikaru shook his head. "I'm still riding high from the meds they gave me earlier. But seriously, something's bothering you and since you're taking care of me, it's only right that I take care of you."

"I'm just concerned about your break from Go. Nothing ever good comes from you not playing Go. You've worked too hard in your pro career to give it up now."

Hikaru rolled his eyes at him. "I'm not giving up anything. This was due to the doctor's orders. You're acting like I don't want to play Go. Besides, just because I can't do official matches doesn't mean I can't play Go with you. _You_ have two workable hands. You can move my stones for me." Hikaru laughed. "Maybe then you'll experience true greatness."

Akira was about to yell at him when Hikaru laughed and he decided it wasn't worth it. Then he realized what Hikaru actually said. "You mean it?" he asked. "You won't withdraw from Go?"

"No, why would I? I'd be bored out of my mind if I couldn't do anything Go-related. Besides, I love you too much to leave you alone for that long. You'd go mad." Another nudge from Hikaru, except this time Akira felt like had had been punched in the face by Hikaru's words.

Hikaru loved him? Truly loved him? The words ricocheted throughout Akira's mind until he was filled by them. Then reality hit Akira. What if Hikaru was just talking about loving him as a friend? Though, shouldn't that be the right train of thought between each other? They were supposed to be friends and nothing more.

Except that thought made Akira's stomach clench. He was Hikaru's friend, but he was so much more than that. They were so much more than eternal rivals. He was no longer just Akira because Hikaru was such a big part of his life. There was no separating the two and Akira was just fine with that.

"Hikaru," Akira began, but Hikaru interrupted him by placing his hand over Akira's.

"You're overthinking again. Honestly, how you win _any_ Go matches, I'll never know. It's always going to be the two of us. I realized that a long time ago and I can't believe you hadn't figured it out either. So can I kiss you or are you going to stare blankly at me for another five minutes?"

Akira didn't need to be told twice. He lunged forward to press his lips against Hikaru's, careful to watch Hikaru's arm so he didn't hurt him. Hikaru's lips were chapped, but he kissed with all the enthusiasm that he had used when he played Go, and Akira loved it.

The next several weeks where Hikaru couldn't play Go was going to be just fine if Akira could distract him like this.


End file.
